11/30/2009

Tamale Pie

I inherited acouple Tamale Pie recipes from my mom (both originally from Gourmet), which sounded tasty, but my go-to chili recipe sounded tastier than the chili in either of those recipes. So I just took my regular chili recipe and added the cornbread topping. I just had black beans around, so used that and added a whole bag of corn, plus a couple squirts of tomato paste to thicken it up. I was also out of milk, so I substituted a half cup of heavy cream and a half cup of water. Turned out just fine.

Ingredients:

For chili

1 lb ground turkey

1 onion garlic

1/2 red pepper

1 cup dried black beans, soaked

1-28 oz cans diced tomatoes

2 tsp tomato paste

1 package frozen corn

1 tsp toasted cumin

1/2 tsp coriander

2-3 tsp chili powder

For topping

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup yellow cornmeal (not coarse)

3 oz coarsely grated sharp Cheddar (3/4 cup)

11/2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

1 medium fresh jalapeño chile, seeded and finely chopped

3/4 cup milk

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Directions:

Make chili: Brown the turkey, then add the onions, garlic and red pepper and cook a bit more until softened, then add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for an hour. Transfer chili to a shallow 3-quart baking dish.

Make topping: Preheat oven to 400°F. Whisk together flour, cornmeal, cheese, sugar, baking powder, salt, cumin, cilantro, and jalapeño in a large bowl. Whisk together milk, butter, and egg in a small bowl, then stir into flour mixture until just combined. Drop batter by large spoonfuls (about 8) over chili, spacing them evenly, and bake in middle of oven 10 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350°F and bake pie until topping is cooked through, about 30 minutes more.

Note: Chili can be made 1 day ahead and cooled, uncovered, then chilled, covered.